This year’s Colorado Symphony Orchestra presentation of Handel’s “Messiah” moves to a more intimate venue, at Montview Boulevard Presbyterian Church, 1980 Dahlia St. The 75-minute performance will take place without intermission.

For fans of George Frideric Handel’s “Messiah,” the Colorado Symphony offers a twist on the holiday classic — a candlelight performance, off-site, in a Denver church.

Why the change in scenery?

“Artistically, Boettcher Concert Hall is great for something as large-scale as Verdi’s ‘Requiem,’ but it’s less ideal for smaller works,” said Scott O’Neil, an associate conductor who will direct the symphony’s two performances of the “Messiah” on Wednesday and Dec. 19 at Montview Boulevard Presbyterian Church on Dahlia Street.

“For perspective, consider that the average concert hall in Europe is about half the size of Boettcher. With smaller works for chorus and orchestra, like the ‘Messiah,’ it’s hard to transmit sound in a large hall like ours . . . moving to the smaller space of the church makes it easier for the orchestra to sound more immediate,” O’Neil said.

While big orchestrations of Handel’s sacred masterpiece exist, the original is quite small. “A large orchestra . . . simply wasn’t available to Handel,” O’Neil said.

“Moving the ‘Messiah’ to Montview allows us to deliver performances that are truer to the composer’s intent.”

Because Boettcher is so vast and the side walls are so far away from the stage, the hall is best-suited to music that requires a full orchestra with the force to create a surround- sound experience. But for chamber music, where the sound is more concentrated and in front of the audience, a smaller venue is more fitting. “Stating the obvious, our ears are on the sides of our heads . . . which means that sound should be reflected from the sides, not the front,” said O’Neil.

“In a large space, the sound of a small orchestra never reaches the side walls. But in a smaller space, like the narrow shoe-box shape of the church, there’s more and closer surface areas from which the sound can reverberate. You’re more tucked in to the music,” he said.

The symphony tries to vary its performances of the “Messiah” every year.

“Last year, we performed a very baroque- sounding ‘Messiah,’ ” he said. “And in the past, we’ve delivered a more traditional, large-orchestra sound,” O’Neil said. “We’re actually just doing what’s known as the Christmas portion of the ‘Messiah’. . . plus the highlights, like the ‘Hallelujah Chorus’ that everyone loves.”

The 75-minute performance will be delivered without intermission and features soloists Yulia Van Doren, soprano; Jamie Van Eyck, mezzo soprano; Marc Molomot, tenor; and Robert Gardner, baritone. Also featured is the Colorado Symphony Chorus, prepared by its veteran director, Duain Wolfe, who splits his time between Denver and Chicago where he also directs the Chicago Symphony Chorus.

“I’m in my fifth season with the symphony, so I’ve heard the chorus prepare for the ‘Messiah’ several years in a row,” said O’Neil. “I’ve seen Duain perform, and I know what the chorus is accustomed to, which has helped shape my own approach to the work.

“While I’ll get just one rehearsal with the chorus, that’s sufficient because we have a unified concept to begin with,” he said. “All that’s needed in rehearsal is refining things a bit, which is a very organic process.”

O’Neil’s enthusiasm for “Messiah by Candlelight” is palpable. “I hope that nobody takes for granted that they might have heard this piece before.”

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